Pro Bono.avi

Title:
After visiting the VirtualTech site, so many opportunities appeared....but after over 40 years in the workforce, during many of which I strived to serve our returning and wounded military, I realized how strong the need was for free or affordable legal advice for so many people.

Slide #1 - Who
They are just one segment of Americans who need advice about many areas of the law: low income people needing divorce counseling, landlord/tenant advice, parental rights, immigration guidance to obtain legal status, rights of minors, etc.

Slide #2 - Who
These people range from the disabled, minor children, single parents, battered women, the elderly, the uneducated and uninformed who don't know their rights, military families who need guidance while the serviceperson is deployed or recently returned

Slide #3 -- What Advice can be offered?
Bankruptcy, divorce counseling, immigration guidance, landlord/tenant issues, military rights and entitlements, civilian rights and entitlements, rights of minors, advocacy for disabled people, employment issues and rights, debtor options;

Slide #4 -- Tools
ProBono.net is a national nonprofit organization dedicated to increasing access to justice through innovative uses of technology and increased volunteer lawyer participation.

ProBono Manager (powered by Probono.net) offers web-based tools that integrate data from internal personnel records, billing, time keeping and docketing systems which consolidates information and thus saves dollars by reducing labor-intensive tasks.

LawHelp.org (again powered by ProBono.net) offers help to low and moderate income people so they can find free legal aid programs in their communities by state.

Slide #5 -- Local Tools
Bucks County in particular offers, Legal Aid, Woman's Place and many local attorneys who offer their services free of charge as part of the county court system. There are many opportunities for paralegals and students to volunteer time assisting in these areas.

Slide #6 -- Why and How are pro bono services offered?
Interviews and surveys of individual attorneys show that almost 80% of respondents performed pro bono work for the personal fulfillment, personal gratification, a sense of responsibility and commitment to a specific cause. The small percentage of those who did not perform pro bono work reported that it was not so much lack of desire as much as lack of time due to the pressure of billable hours.

Slide #7 -- Business Incentive
After talking to an old lawyer friend, I have learned that most firms do not benefit at all financially from pro bono work -- perhaps some marketing perks, but that's about it. Other businesses that perform "pro bono" work, such a Doctors Without Borders, etc. benefit from some sort of global monetary contribution to their work.

Most firms have found that offering motivational incentives have helped to promote their effort to serve the community, such as appealing to an attorney's passion and personal interest, removing barriers from performing pro bono work, providing skill building and professional development goals, and instilling passion among their staff to perform such work.

Category:

People & Blogs

Tags:

• Pro
• Bono